Chapter 59 Corpse Poison

A hint of surprise flashed across Old Master Si's face, then he replied, "Yes, how did you know?"

Jiang Ran pursed her lips and did not answer. Instead, she took out silver needles from her pocket.

Upon seeing this, Old Master Si was startled, and the butler quickly stepped forward to question him: "What are you doing?"

Jiang Ran had always been aware that the housekeeper harbored deep hostility towards her, but considering that he was acting out of kindness and from the perspective of a child, she never held it against him.

He explained, "I've studied some acupuncture, so..."

Before he could finish speaking, the butler interrupted him: "Even if you've only learned the basics, or even if you're an expert, you can't use others as guinea pigs!"

"That's not what I meant," Jiang Ran said, rubbing her forehead.

While they were arguing about not being allowed to fight, Si Zuochen and his companion had just stepped out of the front hall when they saw their private doctor carrying a medicine box heading towards the villa.

Si Zuochen and Si Youlin exchanged a glance and said in unison, "Grandpa?"

He instantly understood and realized something was wrong, so he followed the doctor toward the study.

Upon entering, I saw Jiang Ran among them, holding an acupuncture kit and arguing vehemently with the housekeeper.

Si Zuochen quickly approached and said coldly, "You want to treat Grandpa? Absolutely not!"

"Why not?" Jiang Ran frowned. "Didn't you see me give Si Youlin acupuncture before?"

Upon hearing this, a hint of doubt flashed across Si Youlin's face.

She gave herself acupuncture? When? He had no recollection of it at all.

Upon hearing this, Si Zuochen retorted sharply, "The situation was urgent then, but it's different now!"

"If something happens to Grandpa, can you take on that responsibility?"

Jiang Ran looked up at him, her expression serious: "I guarantee he won't have any accidents."

To everyone's surprise, Si Zuochen scoffed, "What guarantees do you have? What a joke! I'm afraid you'll be the first to run away when things go wrong!"

Jiang Ran ignored him, turned to look at Old Master Si seriously, and asked softly, "I only have one question for you: do you believe me?"

Si Zuochen quickly said, "Grandpa, don't listen to her!"

Old Master Si looked at Jiang Ran with a slight start, his face showing surprise, and then slowly nodded in response, "I believe you."

He wasn't confident in her skills, but rather acting out of kindness.

She's not stupid; even if she had ulterior motives, she wouldn't make such a joke in public.

If anything goes wrong, she will be the first to be held responsible.

Upon receiving confirmation, Jiang Ran nodded slightly and then said, "Do you often experience severe coughing that cannot be relieved, and do you often feel chest tightness and difficulty breathing, especially at night?"

As soon as Jiang Ran finished speaking, Old Master Si and the butler exchanged a glance, both seeing shock in each other's eyes.

He nodded and replied, "That's right."

After receiving a reply, Jiang Ran continued, "The symptoms are similar to those of tuberculosis, but it has been delayed for too long. Now, treatment can only address the symptoms, not the root cause. As the lesions gradually migrate, the medication will eventually be unable to control even the most basic cough."

The doctor, who was standing nearby, spoke up at the opportune moment, saying, "That's indeed the case."

Upon hearing this, Old Master Si sighed softly and began to recount the past. Only then did Jiang Ran learn that it was actually a lingering effect left over from his time in the army.

That's understandable; it's exactly what she expected.

He was suffering from a more serious lung disease than the hospital could treat.

He was poisoned by corpse poison.

Corpse poisoning is similar to plague; it is generally caused by the failure to promptly dispose of corpses after a disaster, resulting in the production of bacteria and other viruses from the decomposition of the bodies.

The old man spent many years on the battlefield, where artillery fire was merciless and corpses were flying everywhere. Over the years, he inhaled this toxin, which gradually formed into corpse poison in his body.

"I have a way to treat it."

Hearing her confident tone, Si Zuochen suddenly scoffed and then asked sarcastically, "You have a way?"

"Could it be that you're more capable than the top academicians in the country? If it were that easy, why would Grandpa have been living abroad for so many years?"

"If you needed treatment, you would have been cured long ago. Why wait until now? You're taking yourself way too seriously."

Hearing Si Zuochen's sarcastic remarks, Jiang Ran pursed her lips.

She had anticipated that they wouldn't understand her, since no one would dare gamble with the health of their loved ones.

Seeing Si Zuochen's indignant expression, Old Master Si couldn't help but speak up: "Achen."

Si Zuochen frowned, turned his head to the side, and stopped talking.

Then he looked up at Jiang Ran, his eyes full of trust: "I agree, you can give it a try."

"Master..." the butler called out from the side, trying to stop him.

Grandpa Si waved his hand and said softly, "It's alright. I've been suffering from this illness for years, so it won't get much worse. At most, it'll just be a waste of time."

Si Zuochen couldn't help but speak up, saying, "Grandpa, acupuncture is no small matter. If you accidentally prick the wrong acupoint..."

Although he didn't finish his sentence, they all understood the implication behind it.

“No, it won’t happen.” Jiang Ran said directly, “I know the human body’s acupoints like the back of my hand, so such a situation will not occur, and you don’t need to worry.”

"It's just that this illness has been going on for too long, and even after I administer acupuncture, it can only temporarily relieve the pain."

Hearing her words, Si Zuochen looked skeptical and asked coldly, "Didn't you just say you had a solution? You've already changed your mind before we've even started?"

"No." Jiang Ran turned her head to look at him: "It can be cured, but it's a bit difficult. However, for me, it's just a matter of time."

"Arrogant!" Si Zuochen sneered. "In my eyes, you're just clueless."

"As far as I know, you knew nothing about acupuncture before, and it seems you've only recently learned it and yet you dare to say such things?"

"It even relieves the pain... If I were you, I'd better leave now before I embarrass myself, so I don't end up being shameful and denying everything later!"

Faced with Si Zuochen's questioning, Jiang Ran raised an eyebrow, pondered for a moment, and calmly replied, "Before? How old are you this year? How could you know so much about my past?"

“I never do anything I’m not confident about. If I say I’m confident I can treat it, then I definitely can cure this disease.”

"Besides, I haven't even started yet, so stop saying such discouraging things!"

Jiang Ran's words carried an unspoken pressure, as if they could truly convince people.

"You!" Si Zuochen was about to retort when he heard her righteous words.

Old Master Si waved his hand, interrupting him, and looked at Jiang Ran, saying softly, "Alright, then give it a try."

"Grandpa!" Si Zuochen quickly stopped him, "No, this is too dangerous!"

Grandpa Si knew he was worried, so he smiled slightly and reassured him, "It's alright, it's just a trial. If there's any discomfort, I'll stop it immediately."

"Besides, the doctor is here, nothing will happen."

"But……"

Si Zuochen glanced at Jiang Ran sideways, still somewhat uneasy.

"Alright, my mind is made up, so please don't try to persuade me anymore," Old Master Si replied in a deep voice.

He wasn't entirely without fear of the unknown, but Jiang Ran's transformation was too drastic, and it was also out of filial piety.

Regardless of the outcome, he never wanted to disappoint her.

Even though he knew she might not have a thorough understanding of the skills, he still wanted to give her a chance.

After thinking it over, he turned to Jiang Ran and said, "Let's begin."

Jiang Ran lowered her eyes and replied, "Okay."

She could feel the gazes directed at her, and even without looking up to see the expressions of those around her, she knew they were all filled with distrust and suspicion.

"Be careful!" Si Zuochen warned sternly from the side.

Jiang Ran seemed not to hear and did not respond. She walked up to Old Master Si and untied the acupuncture kit.

"Could you please take off your shirt?"

Upon hearing this, Old Master Si was slightly taken aback, seemingly not expecting it to be so formal, and then took off his shirt as instructed.

Jiang Ran channeled her spiritual energy into the silver needles, quickly and accurately inserting them into an acupoint, and then gently twisted them.

While performing acupuncture, she lowered her eyes to observe Old Master Si's reaction, and only felt relieved after finding nothing unusual.

Grandpa Si felt a soreness and distension around the acupoint, and then heard her explain from the side: "This is the Feishu acupoint, which is used to treat coughs and has the effect of stopping coughs and relieving asthma. If there is some soreness and distension, it is normal."

He then stabbed several more times.

Looking at her acupuncture, the family doctor couldn't help but say, "The combination of Feishu (BL13), Zhongfu (LU1), Taiyuan (LU9), and Zusanli (ST36) regulates and replenishes lung qi, and is specifically for treating lung qi deficiency."

Si Zuochen was standing beside him, and upon hearing the question, asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"